A slow weekend for sure, especially with the sudden unfortunate cancellation of the Dongpai Folk Festival. Nevertheless, don’t let your guard down, one of these shows might sneak up on ya and shank ya. Keep those ears peeled or you’ll find yourself tipsy turvy over the sounds of summer hop scotching spring, middle finger extended, screaming ‘Yippie Kay-Yay”.

FRIDAY

The big daddy for the weekend – the triumphant return of shoegazy soft-spoken, hard hitting indie rockers Skip Skip Ben Ben who has been riding on fumes since the release of their latest ‘Sacrifice Hill Mountain’ – lots of pats on backs for that one, – tonight’s the official release party at Mao Livehouse with support from the gangly blissfully inebriated Bedstars as well as P.K 14 frontman Yan Hiasong’s latest punk duo After Argument. If you’re looking for something with a little more bubblegum flavor then head over to Temple where French trio The Agency cover the whole spectrum of sofa indie electro with ease and clarity along with the help of our own electro pranksters We Are Not Invited. If the thought of that sends you running then I’d recommend taking a course at School in raw punk with Misandao, Trash Cat, and Discord. Wanna hear some Xinjiang rock and roll that will blow your socks off? Then check out the might and power the legendary Askar (the Grey Wolf) brings to his performance at Jianghu Bar. Norwegian electro outfit Flunk has been steadily been making a name for themselves on the international scene – see if their brand of electronica fits your taste palates at Yugong Yishan – with support from femme trip hop group Lilisay. For some good natured fun Hot Cat Club has you covered as Candy Monster and Fat Tree shake things up. Fresh off of their album release, the Devils at the Crossroads aren’t taking any breathers, hitting up XP this evening along with Cooper Wall. Irish sing-songwriter John Carroll stops by 69 Café for his first show this weekend, while the CD Blues Festival continues with The Randy Abel Stable and Shun Kikuta.

SATURDAY

Two shows whose sole intention is to get you to leave your worries at the door, get your feet moving, and have a side splitting great time compete tonight. First up is Dos Kolegas who will host a ska party with Rolling Bowling, Toy Head, Early Bus, and End of the World. Next, is School who’s bringing in Wu & The Side Effects, Swing Beijing, Liu Yusi, and once again Rolling Bowling (take a break guys come on) – my money’s on 2K due to locale but really can’t go wrong with either one of these. I’m still waiting for hip hop in Beijing to wow me – perhaps tonight as well known rap collective New Street releases their newest album ‘Sinister Gang’ this will change. Maybe. Whatever the case, I’m betting that it will be a party at Yugong Yishan, with a atmosphere that one only gets to dip their toes in from time to time. Metal royalty stops by 13 Club – Ordinance teared it up at MIDI and I expect that the puny walls at the Wudaoku joint won’t hold them back – support from a bunch of names that ring no bells – Famous Young, Less Daddy, Bo Dao and Mica Forced. Continuing on bands who gave ripped it up at MIDI, Buyi, continuing to blow most of the bands in town out of the water, will be scaling it back tonight for an intimate performance at Blue Stream Bar. Topical humorous and above all knee slapping folk band Slap plays on their hometurf, Jianghu Bar tonight. Walnut Room, the experimental ‘doomscape’ duo officially release their album Lost Appearance at Mako Livehouse. Tonight’s showcase at the CD Blues Café includes Dafei & Skyscraper as well as Taste of Soul for some blues action. Irish folk singer John Carroll swings by the Old What? Bar for another show, while the Beijing Beatles wanna hold your hand at Temple, and The Old Beijing Dixie Club brings the hot jazz to Modernista. Lastly, the crew behind the noew defunct Raying Temple, the experimental safe heaven for many, join Zajia Lab’s midnight series for a performance.

SUNDAY

Chengdu-based promoter New Noise brings over Swedish indie rockers with a taste for postrock Immanu El to Mao Livehouse. Electro disco rock invades Temple as Serpenti from Italy look to make their mark on Beijing. Psychedelic jammers Xin Ma You Jiang are slowly receiving more and more attention – see if it’s rightfully so at XP. CD Blues invites long standing Canadian jazz trio LMT Connection for a performance mixing funk, jazz and contemporary jazz. Catch some free jazz with pop sensibilites at School with Dimo. And finally, the IOIC Silent Electronica Tour returns with Swiss The Hula Honeys Orchestra on hand to provide a live soundtrack to the 1921 film ‘L ‘Atlantide’ at Yugong Yishan.